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Backpacking Kathmandu Nepal with VISA on Arrival

Getting a Nepal Visa On Arrival (VOA) in Kathmandu is easy; Probably the most lenient entry I’ve been to so far. Almost all nationalities, Filipinos included, can avail the Visa On Arrival in Kathmandu Airport.

What to Bring ( As of April 2014):

1. One Passport Sized ID Picture , with white background (or you can avail of the services at the airport but its expensive.)

For whatever reason, the Intl. Airport in Kathmandu was very relaxed and tolerant on arriving guest. When I arrived , my backpack did went through the x-ray machine, but as i’ve observed, the officer did not even bother to check the x-ray monitor. Not Good !

Tribhuvan International airport (Kathmandu)

My flight from Delhi to Kathmandu . 2.5 hours

Prepaid Airport Taxi is the best option to take you to the city center, for 750 NPR ( 8 usd ) . It would be ideal if you find a fellow tourist to share taxi with. After all, almost everyone would probably head to Thamel , which is the known tourists’ area at Kathmandu City Center. As I’ve read, Public Transpo can be a bit unpredictable in Nepal, since the supply and cost of Fuel is also unstable . The time I visited, there are no public buses that can take you out of the airport directly to the city center. Airport to Thamel is around 45 minutes. Roads are tight and dusty everywhere in Kathmandu, and seldom do you find an Air-conditioned Taxi, so prepare for that.

Where I Stayed :

Stayed at Happily Ever After Hostel at Thamel Marg, and you might have to get some directions from Google , as the roads in Thamel are like spider webs ! Its when hopping in a fix priced prepaid airport taxi comes in good use.

An overnight stay with Happily Ever After Hostel only cost me around 4.5 USD with breakfast. Expect to share room with 10 people. But Beds were decent and comfortable. Dorms are not Air-conditioned, but it was Spring the time I visited Nepal so the weather is soothing and comfortably cool ( around 18 degrees C at daytime).

The Hostel Has a nice roofdeck , Crowd is more of yuppies and mountain climbers. No Kids allowed.

Happily Ever After Hostel where I stayed in Thamel

Nepal is relatively cheap to explore . Usual Food and Accommodation are cheap. Just to give you a picture , 1 USD is around 100 NPR (Nepalese Rupee). With an appetite like mine, I say that 5-7 USD /day food allowance is enough. Bottled Water is also cheap in Nepal (30 NPR/ 0.30 usd per liter), as the country is abundant with fresh spring water. Small convenient stores are all around, just like Sari Sari Stores in the Philippines.

A usual full vegetarian meal ( they call it “Daal Bhat “) will cost you 160 NPR , with unlimited refill of Side dishes and Rice on most places !. So thats just around 1.5 usd for a heavy lunch.

Meat /chicken BBQ’s will cost you around 350 NPR ( 3.5 usd ) but it can be shared. Heres a picture of Afgan Chicken from a basic restaurant along Thamel named “MacDonalds” . ( Yes ! its like a pirated name. haha )

Afgan style bbq chicken . smoked on a traditional clay pot

Other Affordable but satisfying meals I had around Kathmandu , which are less than 1 USD.

Seedless Grapes are cheap in Nepal, just around 200 NPR per kilo . Its fun munching on this while walking around the city. I just bought a bottle of cold water to wash the grapes, and soaked them a bit to chill.

Mobile Fruit stand

Trying out something new ! Pomegranate fruit !

pomegranate fruit. very textury

Heres a Glimpse of Thamel , the backpacker’s place in Kathmandu. Reminds me a bit of India, but the streets are more tame and less noisy =)

A view of Thamel

Thakali Kitchen, at Thamel. Highly recommended.

Couchsurfing friends in Nepal.

At mommy Rita’s House

This is the famous cheap Rhum in Nepal , costs only around 60 NPR ( less than 1 USD ) But in some stores, they sell it at 80 NPR on tourists. This rhum is 28% alcohol but surprisingly the taste is quite nice ( compared to Tanduay ) . Unicorn Rhum has a bit of mild Ginseng Taste to it.

Nepalese rhum with 28 % Alcohol! We had this almost every night during my stay in Kathmandu . Fun !

Beer is not so cheap in Nepal as compared the the Philippines. A Grande (750 ML ) is around 200 NPR ( 2 usd )